Members of the Social Justice and Peace Committee at St. Joseph Parish in Hills do a little digging on the rectory’s garden plot. Father Bill Kneemiller, pastor, encouraged the committee to organize a sweet corn contest to help raise money to assist with building a well in the parish’s sister parish of Zorange, Haiti.

St. Joseph Parish in Hills is twinning with a sister parish in the town of Zorange, Haiti, which needs a well to provide residents with clean water.

Because the people do not have a source of clean water, they are susceptible to cholera. A deep well will provide the clean water needed to stop this deadly disease and keep people from having to walk long distances to obtain water that is not even clean.

In an effort to raise money to assist in building this well, the Hills parish has come up with two corn contests that individuals may choose to enter. A suggested entry fee for each contest is $50, which will go to ServeHaiti, a nonprofit, faith-based organization that will coordinate the well-building project.

The entry fee is due by May 15 with the check made out to Serve Haiti for Zorange — Well and sent to St. Joseph Catholic Church, PO Box 187, Hills, Iowa, 52235.

Monetary donations of any size are welcome from those who are not inclined to plant corn!

Here are the corn contest details:

Contest 1 — Tallest corn: Submit a photo by Aug. 15 of the corn grower standing beside the corn, along with a measurement of the corn’s height to www.stjhills @netins.net . If two individuals have identical measurements for the tallest corn, the winner will be the first submission received.

Contest 2 — first sweet corn of the season: Send a photo of the corn grower showing a dozen ears of mature, edible sweet corn by Aug. 1 to www.stjhills@netins.net.

The winners of these two contests will each receive a gourmet meal, for themselves and their immediate family, provided by St. Joseph Parish. Their photo also will be included in an issue of The Catholic Messenger, the diocesan newspaper.

Please remember that the contests are for fun, but the outcome is a Well for Zorange, which is a matter of clean water and a life free of the deadly disease of cholera. Contest results will be determined by the Social Justice and Peace Committee from St. Joseph Catholic Church.

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